How To Get Rid Of Ants Naturally

By Alex Steblowsky

How to get rid of ants naturally

Ants are very persistent and it’s not at all easy to rid your home of these annoying creatures. Resorting to the use of pesticides in spray cans is not the ideal solution. You would most likely go through a couple of cans a week, and still not solve the problem. In addition, you would be guilty of doing your share of damaging the environment and our precious eco system!

A natural approach to ward off, or eliminate ants from your home, would be infinitely better and have no harmful effects on the environment.

There are many natural (and cheap) options available to get rid of ants in an eco friendly way.

Vinegar – Put a little white vinegar in a spray bottle. Spray at all entry points you can find and along the pheromone trail, a chemical factor secreted by the ants, which is recognized by the others and followed. Once the vinegar dries, repeat the process for a couple of days. This will discourage the ants and they will move on.

Soapy water – This is one of the most popular and easiest ways to get rid of ants. Simply fill a spray bottle with some dish-washing soap and hot water. It kills the ants and obliterates the familiar trail. It only works when wet so you will have to reapply for a few days.

Chalk – Amazingly, ants will not cross chalk lines! Nobody seems to know why, but it an excellent way to put an end to ant trails heading for your home. All you need is some ordinary white chalk, so if you don’t mind chalk lines all over the place, go ahead and draw!

Baby powder – has the same effect. Sprinkle some at any entrance points to block the trails.

Lemon juice – Lemon can be used in many ways to enhance your health but it also works well as natural ant repellent with an added of adding nice, fresh smell to your home. Just spray pure lemon juice around the openings. You will be surprised how the acid in the juice seems to mess up their sense of tracking.

Diatomaceous earth. This is something of a mouthful so let’s refer to it as DE! DE is an amazing, multi-purpose remedy that helps us get rid of ants as well as all sorts of other unwelcome creepy crawly guests! You can use it outside by sprinkling it around the perimeter of your house, and also use quite safely inside wherever you see ants. DE does not kill instantly, but it should solve the problem within a few days. Remember not to wet the DE, or it will not work. So if it rains, it would be a good idea to redo the outside area. Always use the food-grade DE as it is completely safe should one of your pets decides to eat some of it.

Coffee grounds – For some reason ants don’t like the smell of coffee. If you sprinkle used coffee grounds around the edge of your home, and at any entry points you find, the ants will not venture any further. Coffee grounds sprinkled in the garden will also keep ants away from the plants.

Corn meal – Put some corn meal out for the ants to feast on. They love corn meal and carry it back to the nest to eat. But because they are unable to digest it, it eventually kills them, as their stomachs expand and burst, resulting in a rather unpleasant death. This seems something of an unusual way to deal with ants, and the popularity of the method has not been documented.

Salt – Salt does not kill ants. This is contrary to the belief many people have that it does. A salt solution is used as a deterrent to stop ants coming into the house through cracks, holes, over windowsills etc. They will not walk over or through any area sprayed with a salt solution. You can also sprinkle salt along cracks in the driveway or along the sides of the house where ants are present. Make sure that areas are dry before applying the salt.

How to get rid of ants naturally

Ants are very persistent and it’s not at all easy to rid your home.

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NOTE from Angels4Light:

I understand that there are over 12,000 species of Ants. Some are extremely aggressive and have been nicknamed Biting Ants, Piss Ants, and other assorted names with expressions of disgust. All the fancy and long winded names mean nothing to those whose lives are turned upside down because of these little beast.

We all know that these little pest can ruin a picnic in a hurry. And if you don’t know how to rid them from your area or home, your life can become miserable indeed.

Farmers plagued with Fire Ants are in dire need of rescue, especially if they want to have a totally organic crop without pesticides, which we know are carcinogens, so what is there to do?

Here is a neat list of possibilities worth exploring:

These are environment-friendly methods that use natural ingredients and do not cause harm to pets or children.

Now there are some positive things about Ants, but this article is addressing the invasion of these little pest.

Natural Ways to Get Rid of Ants

Summer brings so many wonderful things, but it also brings out the ants and they seem to be everywhere. They are in your cabinets, on your plants, in your bathroom, and in your pet’s food bowl. Even thst you maintain a squeaky clean home which is said to be the best way to keep ants away from your home, we understand that there are times when these pesky critters get the best of you.

Try these recipes/suggestions and see which one works best for your situation.

1) ‘Aromatherapy’ for ants

Ants release pheromones that guide other ants to the source of food. To prevent other ants from tracking such scent trails into your house, use eucalyptus, peppermint, clove or tea tree essential oils. Just add a few drops of the oil to a cotton ball and place in areas where you have seen ants attacking your home. Repeat as needed until the ants are completely gone.

Mommypotamus has a great recipe for making a natural, ant-repellent spray using essential oils. According to the website, just add a quarter cup of water, a quarter cup of vodka, 15 drops each of peppermint essential oil and tea tree essential oil, and seven drops of citrus essential oil to a spray bottle. Shake well and spray on all areas you’ve seen ants trailing in and out of your home. Replace tea tree essential oil with an equal amount of peppermint essential oil if you want to use the spray on a food surface.

2) Magic vinegar

Vinegar, just like essential oils, can be used to eliminate the pheromone trail left behind by worker ants. The strong smell of vinegar also repels ants, making it doubly effective.

To make your own vinegar spray, add equal parts of vinegar (you can use both apple cider vinegar and white vinegar for this) and water in a spray bottle and spray on baseboards, window cracks or any other place you find ants. You may need to do this a few times a day for best results. Wiping down your kitchen countertops with this solution every night will also help you keep ants away.

If you find many anthills outside your house, you can pour 100% vinegar over them and the surrounding areas to banish the critters from your property. However, please note that vinegar can also destroy the plants and grass nearby.

3) Citrus power

Here is a great use for your leftover orange peels from yesterday. Chop up the peels and add to a pot with just enough water to cover them. Heat till the water starts steaming and then take the pan off the stove. Rest the mixture overnight. In the morning, strain the liquid into a spray bottle and spray on all surfaces where you have seen ants crawling around.

To get rid of anthills on your property, blend a handful of orange peels along with one cup of water and pour this solution over them.

Lemon juice is another effective ant repellant. Just mix equal parts of lemon juice and water in a spray bottle and use as directed above. Or throw a few slices of lemon peel around window cracks and entry points. Lemon has the added advantage of being effective against cockroaches and fleas too.

4) Mint to the rescue

The strong smell of mint throws ants’ ability to track the pheromone trail left behind other ants into haywire. So instead of dumping your used mint tea bags in the trash, place them wherever you have seen ants entering your home. While whole mint leaves can be dried and placed on your pantry shelves and cupboards to prevent ants from attacking your food supplies, you can also dry mint leaves in the oven, crush them to a fine powder, and sprinkle it around all ant entry points to your home.

As a further ant deterrent, plant some mint around your house, especially around the kitchen or any other places in your home that are more vulnerable to ant attacks. It will prevent more ants from finding the way into your home and also help you whip up some delicious mojitos this summer!

5) Homemade bait with baking soda

Did you know that you could make homemade bait for ants using baking soda and powdered sugar? Mix one part baking soda with one part icing sugar in a shallow container and keep it on a surface where you usually find ants. In a few days, you will find that the ants have drastically reduced in number.

Apparently, ants cannot distinguish between sugar and baking soda. While the sugar will attract the critters towards the bait, the baking soda will react with the acid in their digestive systems, causing a lot of gas and ultimately killing them. So if you see any ant carrying the baking soda/sugar mixture away, don’t squish it. The more the ants carry back, the better your chances are of getting rid of the entire colony of ants that have made your home their main food source!

6) One more reason to have coffee!

If you do not want to kill the ants, but just drive them away, here’s yet another method that plays havoc with the ability of ants to track scent trails. The strong smell of coffee grounds has been found to confuse the scent-sensing ability of the ants, blocking them from finding their way to a potential food source – your house.

So next time you make a cup of your favorite brew, just sprinkle the leftover grounds around your house, along the foundation or over anthills in your property. This will help keep the critters away from your house. What’s more, this method is completely safe, eco-friendly and does not cost anything at all! However, in order for it to work, you may have to replace the grounds very often. You can also spritz the grounds with water every day to keep the smell fresh and strong.

7) Feed them cornmeal

If you are looking for more safe, natural and cost-effective methods for getting rid of ants, here is another one using a common ingredient in your pantry – cornmeal.

Pour cornmeal over places where you see ants trailing in and out of your home. If you see an anthill in your property, empty some cornmeal into a shallow container and place it close to the nest. The ants will treat cornmeal as food and carry it back to their nests to feed their colony. However, ants cannot digest cornmeal easily, and this will eventually cause them to starve and die.

Though you may not see immediate results on using this method, the ant population around your home will start decreasing in a week or two. Moreover, this method is extremely cheap and safe to use in homes with pets or children.

8) An extraordinary use for ordinary dish soap

Here is one thing you didn’t know about your common dish soap – it’s a very effective and cheap ant repellant. To stop an ant attack in its tracks, mix one part of liquid dish detergent with two parts of water in a spray bottle and spray. Don’t forget to cover all surfaces where you normally see ants wandering around. To destroy anthills in your property and kill all the critters inside, directly pour soapy water on them.

According to many websites, soap breaks down the protective layers of the ants’ exoskeletons, causing dehydration and death. The soapy solution also washes away all traces of ant pheromones, making it difficult for other ants to follow the trail to your home. However, if you use the soapy solution on your floors, be careful to wipe them clean of any residue later to avoid falls and accidents.

9) Make it spicy!

To prevent ants from invading your house this summer, ground some cinnamon and sprinkle the powder along your doors, window cracks, the backs of your countertops, and so on. Take care that the powder doesn’t get onto any surface where it might cause a stain.

Other spices, including garlic, cayenne pepper, black pepper, cloves, sage, and bay leaves, have also been found to be effective against ants. Just mix black or cayenne pepper with water in a spray bottle and spray it on the ants to watch them scatter.

To keep ants away from your flour or sugar containers, slip a small bay leaf inside them or tape a couple of leaves to the inside of the container lid. You can also line the backs of your pantry shelves with bay leaves or sachets of whole spices as an added precaution. Your pantry will also smell awesome!

10) Build an ant fence with petroleum jelly

Petroleum jelly or Vaseline, which is commonly used for its cosmetic care uses, is also a great ant repellant. Buy at least a couple of huge tubs of petroleum jelly and apply a thick coat of this sticky substance along all known ant entry and exit points to your house. While applying it on door or window cracks, make sure you cover both the inside and outside surfaces. You can also draw a thick layer of jelly outside your pet’s food bowl or your plant containers to keep ants away for good. Petroleum jelly can also be used to keep ants away from your bird feeder.

Apparently, ants find petroleum jelly toxic and will never walk over it. For best results, make sure that you reapply a preventive layer of petroleum jelly along your windows and the foundation of your house every year.